BBA Aviation flying high

BBA Aviation, the aviation support firm, has boasted a significant rise in both revenue and profit for the year ended December 31st.

Statutory profit before tax was up 24% from $132m to $163.6m (up 15% to £170.2m before exceptional items), while revenue was up 17% from $1,833.7m to $2,136.7m.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation rose 13% from $221m to $250.1m, while basic underlying earnings per share gained 6% from 27.3c to 29c, after the firm continued to outperform the market, albeit at a slower rate than expected.

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Division-wise, Aftermarket Services & Systems (AS&S) profit was up 23%, while Flight Support was up 10%.

AS&S had a very strong year with revenue growing by 18% to $806.6m (2010: $684.2m) of which 12% was organic. The balance of the increase was accounted for by the acquisition of the GE Aviation Systems' fuel measurement business.

Flight Support continued to make good progress, with headline revenue up 16% to $1,330.1m (2010: $1,149.5m), although higher fuel prices increased revenue by $130.7m and the net impact of acquisitions and disposals in the division contributed an additional $21.8m to revenue. Flight Support revenues increased by 2% on an organic basis.

Simon Pryce, BBA Aviation Chief Executive Officer, said: "We will continue to deliver operational improvement, to flex costs and to deploy our available capital to a strong pipeline of attractive investment and consolidation opportunities. Whilst the macro-economic climate remains uncertain, we anticipate making further progress during the year.

"Over the medium-term, the strengths and track record of our business together with the structural drivers of our markets give us continued confidence in the attractive growth prospects for BBA Aviation and our ability to deliver superior through-cycle returns."

Free cash flow increased by 4% with continued strong cash conversion of 102% after the firm implemented a stable, long-term funding structure.

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